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NAHL U.S. National Team

National Team Development Program Weekly Update

February 11, 2009 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
U.S. National Team News Release


THIS WEEK: The U.S. National Under-17 Team will travel to Wyandotte, Mich., for a February 15 matchup against the Motor City Machine. The puck is set to drop at 5:10 p.m ET. The Under-18s will be in Colorado Springs, Colo., on the same day for a 3:07 p.m. MT game against Colorado College of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

UNDER-18 HEAD COACH RON ROLSTON: Ron Rolston is in his fifth year as a head coach with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. He has amassed a career record of 173-101-7-16 (W-L-T-OTL).

UNDER-17 HEAD COACH JOHN HYNES: John Hynes is in his sixth year as a head coach with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. He has amassed a career record of 201-106-9-17 (W-L-T-OTL).

U.S. NAT'L U-18 TEAM NOTES: The U.S. National Under-18 Team won the Five Nations Tournament for the third consecutive year. The event was held in Nykoping, Sweden. The U.S. defeated Sweden (3-2), Czech Republic (7-3), Finland (3-2) and Russia (5-3) en route to the tournament title ... David Valek (Orem, Utah/6-13--19) led the team in points during the tournament with six (2-4). Kyle Palmieri (Montvale, N.J./15-14--29) and Kenny Ryan (Franklin Village, Mich./19-16--35) each scored a team-best three goals, while Valek and Nick Mattson (Chanhassen, Minn./2-13--15) tied for the paced the team with four assists each. Adam Murray (Anchorage, Alaska) went 3-0-0 during the tournament, compiling a 2.67 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage ... Ryan and A.J. Treais (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./14-21--35) are tied for the team lead in points for the season with 35 each. Treais leads the team in assists with 21 while Ryan is second on the team in goals with 19 ... Jeremy Morin (Auburn, N.Y./20-10--30) paces the team with 20 goals ... Jerry D'Amigo (Binghamton, N.Y./15-18--33) is third on the team in points with 33 and is averaging a point per contest through 33 games

U.S. NAT'L U-17 TEAM NOTES: The U.S. National Under-17 Team won the Vlad Dzurilla Tournament in Piestany, Slovakia. Team USA defeated host Slovakia, 7-1, to capture its first tournament title of the season ... Stuart Higgins (Troy, Mich./8-10--18) led the team with five points (1-4) during the tournament. He also led the team in assists. Emerson Etem (Long Beach, Calif./13-18--31) led the team in goals with three and finish tied with Austin Czarnik (Washington, Mich./14-20--34) for second on the team in points with four (3-1). Czarnik had two goals and two assists. Jack Campbell (Port Huron, Mich.) was 2-0-0, compiling a 1.00 goals-against average and a .952 save percentage. He was named the best goalie of the tournament ... Matthew Nieto (Long Beach, Calif./19-25--44) leads the team in points during the season with 44. He is also the team-leader in goals and assists. He is averaing 1.07 points per game ... Czarnik is second on the team in points with 34 (14-20) ... Frankie Simonelli (Bensenville, Ill./5-15--20) leads all defensemen with 20 points ... Campbell and Will Yanakeff (Jerome, Mich.) have combined for six shutouts, with each contributing three. Campbell leads the team in goals-against average at 2.13 and save percentage at .912. Yanakeff has posted a 2.42 GAA and .905 save percentage.

U-17 VS. MOTOR CITY: The Motor City is currently last in the NAHL North Division with a 6-33-1 record ... The Under-17 Team has faced the Machine five times this season, winning all five contests. In the most recent game on January 16, Team USA was victorious by the score of 4-3 ... Ryan Misiak leads the Machine in points with 27 (10-17).

U-18 VS. COLORADO COLLEGE: Sunday's game marks the fifth time the two teams have faced each other. Colorado College won all four of the previous matchups, including a 6-3 win on October 12, 2007 ... Two USNTDP alumni currently play for Colorado College: Billy Sweatt (2004-06) and Andreas Vlassopoulos (2004-06) ... The U.S. National Under-18 Team is 1-2-0 against the WCHA this season, with its lone win coming against the University of Alaska Anchorage, 4-3 (Sept. 25, 2008)

UP NEXT: The Under-17 Team returns home to Ann Arbor for a two-game set against NAHL North rival Alpena IceDiggers on February 20-21. Both games are set to begin at 7 p.m. ET. The U18s also will be hosting a two-game series at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube. The team squares off against defending NAHL Robertson Cup champion St. Louis Bandits on February 21-22. Saturday's game will start at 3:30 p.m., while the puck drops on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET ... Saturday is Host Family Appreciaton Day ... USA Hockey will be honoring its host families and welcoming families interested in hosting a U.S. player free of charge.

NTDP VS. INT'L OPPONENTS: The U.S. National Under-17 and Under-18 Teams completed a rare sweep of their February international events by winning both the 2009 Under-18 Five Nations Tournament (U.S. U18) and 2009 Vlad Dzurilla Under-18 Tournament (U.S. U17). The NTDP last accomplished that feat in 2007, and previously did it in 2005. Both events represent the last international competitions before the 2009 IIHF World Under-18 Championship in Fargo, N.D., and Moorhead, Minn. The U.S. National Under-18 Team has captured the Under-18 World Championship three times (2002, 2005, 2006) and has medaled in each of the last five years (2004-08).

NTDP IN THE PROS: As of today, over 40 National Team Development Program alumni have suited up in at least one National Hockey League game ... Goalie Chris Holt (2002-03) was recently called up by the St. Louis Blues ... Mark Stuart (2000-02) of the Boston Bruins is second among American-born defensemen with a plus-minus rating of plus-14 ... Ryan Whitney (2000-01) of the Pittsburgh Penguins leads all American-born players in time-on-ice per game, at 25:25.

NTDP IN THE NCAA: The National Team Development Program has produced nearly 300 NCAA ice hockey players in its 12-year history including three Hobey Baker Memorial Award Winners and 25 All-Americans ... The University of Wisconsin's Jamie McBain (2004-06) leads the nation's defensemen with 34 points (7-27). His 27 assists are second in the nation ... Colin Wilson (2005-07/10-26--36) of Boston University is tied for sixth in the NCAA with 36 points. His 26 assists are tied for third... Jordan Schroeder (2006-08/10-20--30) of the University of Minnesota leads all NCAA freshmen in points with 30.

HOCKEY WEEKEND ACROSS AMERICA: The second annual Hockey Weekend Across America, presented by Reebok -- a three-day nationwide celebration of the sport of hockey -- will take place Feb. 13-15, 2009. Each of the three days associated with Hockey Weekend Across America has a theme, including Wear Your Favorite Hockey Jersey on Friday, Bring a Friend to the Rink on Saturday and Celebrate Local Hockey Heroes on Sunday. Material for download, including the event logo and poster are available on the web. For more information on Hockey Weekend Across America, presented by Reebok visit HockeyWeekendAcrossAmerica.com ... The U.S. National Under-18 Team will be participating in a post-game autograph session with the Colorado College Tigers. Drew Shore (Denver, Colo.), William Wrenn (Anchorage, Alaska) and Adam Murray (Anchorage, Alaska) will represent Team USA at the autograph session which will begin approximately 20 minutes after the conclusion of the CC-USA U18 Game which begins at 3:05 p.m. MT. For more information, visit CCTigers.com.

ABOUT THE NTDP: Founded in 1996, USA Hockey's National Team Development Program was created to prepare student-athletes under the age of 18 for participation on U.S. National Teams and success in their future hockey careers. Its efforts focus not only on high-caliber participation on the ice, but creating well-rounded individuals off the ice. Located in Ann Arbor, Mich., the 46 players in the program are split into two squads - the U.S. National Under-18 and Under-17 Teams.

- In the 10 years NTDP players have been eligible for the draft, 152 players have been selected, including the number one overall selection in 2000 (Rick DiPietro), 2006 (Erik Johnson) and 2007 (Patrick Kane).

- In 2007-08, 44 NTDP alumni appeared in at least one game in the National Hockey League.

- Patrick Kane (2004-06) became the first NTDP alumnus to earn the National Hockey League's Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's top rookie in 2007-08.

- Kevin Porter (2002-04), of the University of Michigan, joined Jordan Leopold (1997-98) and Matt Carle (2000-02) as the third NTDP alumnus to win the Hobey Baker Memorial Award as college hockey's top player in 2007-08.

- In the 12-year history of the National Team Development Program, players from 28 states have donned the Team USA uniform. This season 18 different states are represented between the U.S. National Under-17 and Under-18 Teams.

Check out the U.S. National Team Statistics



North American Hockey League Stories from February 11, 2009


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